Jewish and Muslim leaders seek to heal rift through dialogue at FAU

September 13, 2010|By Lois Solomon, Sun Sentinel

BOCA RATON — Muslim and Jewish students at FAU set out to counter American hostility to Islam on Monday by studying a holy story they share: the near-sacrifice of the son of Abraham, a patriarch of both faiths.

In response to a Gainesville pastor's plan, ultimately cancelled, to burn Qurans on Sept. 11, about 40 people gathered at Florida Atlantic University to study the biblical binding, as recounted in the Torah and the Quran, and found in the Old Testament's Genesis 22:1-24.

Leaders said the best way to get to know each other — after the Rev. Terry Jones' threat, the controversial plan to place a mosque and community center near Ground Zero in New York and the ninth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks — is to learn from each other's religious texts.

The session mirrors an approach in use by FAU's Interfaith Committee, in which FAU professors and other staff members meet regularly and study each other's faiths.

Explanations of the near-death of the son of Abraham, offered by a Boca Raton rabbi and a Cooper City sheikh, converged on Monday but also split on many points, including who is permitted under Jewish and Muslim religious traditions to interpret these written stories. Students and community members challenged the spiritual leaders, especially the sheikh, Musab Abdul-Hakeem, head of the Islamic/Arabic department at Nur Ul Islam Academy, on how to decipher apparent calls to violence in the Quran.

Mona Hassan, president of FAU's Muslim Student Organization, said she was deeply moved by the discussion, even when questioners were hostile.

"As a Muslim, I want to dialogue with these types of people," she said. "I want to hear their questions and tell them how it really is."

Still, some students were unmoved by the Muslim speakers' explanations of Islam's peaceful tenets.

"If what was said in this room is true, 99 percent of the Islamic world is not following Islam," said Josh Steinfeld, 25.

The meeting was sponsored by the Jewish Student Union, an arm of Hillel, and the Muslim Student Organization. The two groups began talking a few weeks ago when they found themselves at adjacent tables during FAU's Clubfest, when students sign up for extracurricular activities.

Rabbi David Steinhardt of B'nai Torah Congregation in Boca Raton said extremists dominate discussion on Islam's place in American society. He said voices of composure and restraint need to speak up. He said Jews understand the deep pain the threatened burning of the Quran caused Muslims, since Nazis in World War II rejoiced in burning Jews' holy writings.

"The world so desperately needs moderating forces," Steinhardt said. "We need to listen to each other's differences and remain in conversation."

Rabbi Barry Silver of Congregation L'Dor V'Dor of Lake Worth, who attended the luncheon as an audience member, said he reaches out to members of the Muslim community but has trouble squaring his intellectual goals with what he has read in the Quran. He said he sought to educate his children on Islam's peaceful attributes but couldn't find a page in the Quran that did not advocate rage and cruelty.

"Intolerance and violence [in the Quran] are rampant," said Silver, noting that Jewish texts also recount violent incidents. The texts "shouldn't be taken as the literal word of God. You're setting up a climate of dangerous activities," he said.

Abdul-Hakeem said Muslims believe the Quran is God's direct word. He emphasized the text was written in the sixth century, when Islam often was under assault, and fighting was permitted as a way to protect the faith. He said Arabic speakers who are trained in Quranic interpretations are the best people to ask about individual passages.

Scott Brockman, director of FAU Hillel, said FAU's Interfaith Committee is planning several events to encourage religious dialogue, including a seminar Tuesday on Holy Sexuality, a January talk on Spirituality in the Black Community and an Interfaith Summit in March.

"What this community needs," Brockman said, "is for young people to step forward and say this is the type of community we want."